The peace and quiet in the little Dutch village of Giethoorn are almost surreal. That is, until you realise there aren’t any automobiles, which is why it is so silent. In actuality, since there are no roads, there is no way for cars to travel about.
Giethoorn residents and visitors commute in stealthy ways: by bicycle, boat, or foot. There isn’t much to do in this hamlet, which is made up of a number of little peat islands connected by bridges, except than sulk alone among thatched-roof farmhouses and footbridges that span the network of canals.
The name of the village dates back to the thirteenth century (an era in which it seems to have settled). According to legend, the area’s first farmers came across a collection of wild goat horns believed to have perished in the 1170 Flood.
